"Perhaps you heard about the executive that hired a new secretary who hadn’t worked in an office environment for the past 20 years. He knew he was in trouble when he found white out on the computer screen the next day.
There is no question that we must learn new technology if we want to be productive and remain relevant. There are many technology devices and software which can save time if used properly. But there are also many that can waste time if they aren't really needed or if they perform a task we could do quicker without them.
Before you buy your next electronic gizmo, consider three questions:
1) How long will it take to learn? 2) Will it really solve a problem for me? 3) Do I really need it or do I just want it?
If you still think you need it, pray about it and wait one week before you buy. Let God show you if it will really help you redeem the time.
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"At 7 ft 8 inches Radhouane Cahrbib of Tunisia is the world's tallest living man. Radhouane is one of 11 tall brothers and sisters. He enjoys playing basketball and not surprisingly his local team is top of the league. Radhouane says he enjoys “the position from which I see the world.""
Whether he realized it or not, Radhouane expressed a key principle of Biblical time management. Viewing life from a higher perspective means using our time in ways that will matter further down the road.
God said, ""My ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts are higher than your thoughts"". When you are up higher you can naturally see further down the road. Seeing life from God's perspective then is to focus not on the immediate, but on what is long lasting or permanent. Cultivating the ability to see and plan further down the road, including preparing for eternity, gives us the frame of reference we need to redeem the time.
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"William Longstaff would not have thought of himself as a hymnwriter. In fact, he may have only written one poem in his life. But that poem was titled take time to be holy. It appeared once in a newspaper and was soon forgotten until years later when a Gospel composer remembered it and set it to music. That’s how the hymn we know as take time to be holy was born. This beautiful hymn gives us some great directions on how to manage our time. Just listen to the first verse:
Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord.
Abide in Him always and feed on his word.
Make friends with God’s children.
Help those who are weak.
Forgetting in nothing,
His blessing to seek.
Remember Mr. Longstaff’s advice and take time to be holy if you want to redeem the time.
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"After living 42 years in Manhattan, 76-year-old Kiveli Papajohn moved to Cyprus to enjoy the quiet life. Unfortunately things got a bit too quiet when Ms. Papajohn became trapped in a tiny elevator for 6 days. She later credited her survival to her nibbling on the few tomatoes she had with her and to prayer.
Ms. Papajohn would probably agree that it’s not always the best choice to take the elevator. In many cases, the time saving technique is to take the stairs. Lots of people habitually take the elevator in their office building or apartment to go just one or two floors. They will usually spend longer waiting on the elevator to arrive than they would have spent on the stairs.
In addition to saving time, stair climbers benefit from the exercise of climbing. Why spend time and money on a stair stepping machine at the local gym when you can climb real stairs for free?
Anything that gets us there faster and keeps us in shape is definitely redeeming the time.
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